High
gas, diesel prices hurt Calif. farm industry [Associated
Press]
FRESNO,
Calif. -- Farmers in California's agricultural heartland say record-high gas
and diesel prices are putting pressure on their bottom lines, but economists
say it's unlikely that will translate into significantly higher food prices
across the U.S. Keith Nilmeier, a fourth-generation farmer in Fresno County,
has cut down on using his farm equipment to compensate for climbing fuel costs.
Among other changes, Nilmeier - who grows fruit on 300 acres near Sanger -
makes only one pass, instead of three, through the orchards and vineyards with
his disking machine linked to a furrower. And he keeps farm supervisors driving
smaller, fuel-efficient cars around his fields….The Fresno County Farm Bureau
says farmers are hoping that, as economists predicted, gas prices will
stabilize in the coming days.
Editorial: Can California
afford the cost of cleaner air? [Redding Record Searchlight]
There's
no price tag on breathing, but clean air does cost money. Californians have
been jarringly reminded of that over the past week after a series of refinery
and pipeline problems caused gasoline prices to leap to record highs….Indeed,
the state's push for cleaner air never really ends. Air Resources Board
officials dropped into Redding just last week to explain and hear from the
public about proposed new standards for the diesel engines that run off-road
equipment. The benefits of cleaner diesel engines are substantial — but the new
regulations are a potentially huge new burden on farmers, ranchers and loggers,
not industries that can casually scrap machinery and invest in the latest and
greatest….For too many Californians these days, the cost of living and doing
business, including our clean-air rules, is making that impossible.
Groups
urge more action to limit pesticide use [Ventura County Star]
Maria
Jimenez lives in Santa Paula, a town bordered by farm fields and orchards, and
worries about the effects of pesticides on children….She was one of several
people who spoke at an event outside the Santa Clara Valley Neighborhood for
Learning preschool — one of a series of news conferences held throughout
California and other states Tuesday to roll out a new report on pesticide
use….The report compiles snapshots of various studies and was released by the
Pesticide Action Network North America, an Oakland-based organization that
advocates against hazardous pesticides….Reached by phone after Tuesday's event,
John Krist, CEO of the Farm Bureau of Ventura County, said the agricultural
community also is concerned about potential health effects…."The farmers
and ranchers in Ventura County ... they live in the community, too," Krist
said. They send their children to local schools and have as great an interest
in using materials safely as anyone else, he said.
Farmers
tout economic clout, call for subsidies [North County Times]
Preserving
Escondido's farms, which employ more than 2,000 people and account for $81
million a year in revenue, was the focus of an agricultural summit attended by
more than 100 local farmers last week.
Organized
by a coalition called Escondido Growers for Agricultural Preservation, the
summit emphasized the importance of lobbying city officials to lower water
rates, provide better access to recycled sewer water and place more emphasis on
agriculture's potential to help the city achieve its economic development
goals….Eric Larson, executive director of the San Diego County Farm Bureau,
said local farmers must keep stressing how much they contribute to Escondido's
economy….But Mayor Sam Abed and other city leaders have also expressed
frustration at the subsidies agriculture needs to survive. In order to cancel
the 12 percent hike proposed for farmers in December, council members had to
increase water rates 14 percent or more for many other customers to make up the
difference.
Many
Apples, Few Pickers [Wall Street Journal]
Washington
state is enjoying the second-biggest apple crop in its history, but farmers warn
they may have to leave up to one-quarter of their bounty to rot, because there
aren't enough pickers. "I'm down 40% from the labor I need," said
Steve Nunley, manager of a 3,000-acre apple orchard for Pride Packing Co. in
Wapato, Wash. Mr. Nunley said he has 200 pickers right now, but needs close to
400. He has increased pay to $24 for every 1,000-pound bin of Gala apples they
pick, compared with $18 last year. Even so, he expects to have to let tons of
fruit fall unpicked this season….In a standoff, growers say they can't afford
to raise wages further, and workers decline to work for what they're being
offered….Philip L. Martin of the University of California, Davis, said overall
U.S. production of fruits and vegetables has remained stable in recent years.
Moreover, he said, farm-labor wages have remained flat or even declined.
"You would think that wages would go up" if workers were in short
supply, he explained.
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Zacky
Farms files for bankruptcy, blames feed prices [Fresno Bee]
Fresno-based
Zacky Farms, one of the largest turkey producers in the U.S., has filed for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy, blaming high feed prices for soaring losses in recent
years. The bankruptcy filing sets the stage for an auction sale of the company
by mid-January, according to court documents filed this week in Sacramento….
The family-owned company not only runs its turkey processing plant in Fresno
and another processing center in Stockton, but also operates a number of its own
turkey farms in the central San Joaquin Valley….In its bankruptcy resolution,
Cooper said, Zacky "has recently faced an extremely difficult liquidity
crisis caused in large measure by the price of feed for its birds" and has
been unable to keep up with its debts. The company estimates that it is
spending about $1.8 million a week to feed its approximately 2.5 million
turkeys and chickens….Zacky Farms has been forced to seek emergency funds to
continue to feed the turkeys at its farms and keep the company going through
the holiday season.
Ag
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